Yay! I get to start the thread again! I've just been watching the lunchtime news, and there was a report about the new government obsession with obesity (President Tony is going to have us all in Fat Camp!), and they said that all Americans have been asked to lose 10lbs as a mark of patriotism. Can that possibly be true? US chums, please confirm or deny

Quiet day working at home today, but this morning I made yummy no-point beetroot soup (ingredients: beetroot, balsamic vinegar, mustard, YUM) and soda bread (YUM YUM!!!). So, feeling very virtuous. I was so far off the wagon for the last couple of months that my promise to myself this week is to take it one day at a time. So far, so good, and my first goal (deliberately a very vague one) is to get back down below the magic 200 marker. But I'm not sweating it - tho' I did turn down Blokey's offer of a glass of wine when I got in last night (so what did he do? YUP, drank the whole bottle himself ).

Ok, better go - back later to chat properly!

hugs,
Lxxx

hello all,
i feel much better today. although my head is still a bit sore. ah well. being ill has made me eat healthier which is most unlike me. i guess i'm figuring if i eat my veggies and so on i'll be in more of a position to fight colds in the future.
lolly - good on you for getting back on the ww wagon. i guess you've kind of come half way in the battle, had a bit of a rest (although it may just feel like a never-ending struggle!) and now it's time to finish it off! you can do it. just remember what it was like when you first started. how obsessed by it you were, how you wrote everything down and counted things properly. regain that enthusiasm!!
hope everyone has a fab day, workwise and ww-wise! i better get back to reading a dull feature on nuclear fusion....
kirsty

Lolly - I haven't heard about the 10 pounds for patriotism... but hopefully I can contribute. 20 pounds by May 1st seems so hard. Beetroot soup? It's good? I'm not sure I've ever had a beet before.

I mentioned this yesterday, but no one said anything. Has anyone else received "Today's Special" ? It's a magazine with really fast low-point dinners and snacks we got at our WW meetings. FLourine Mark owns our WW fanchise in the North east so maybe we're only getting it here... but it's awesome. My roommate and I were excited to look through it... we're going to try some of the ideas soon.

I'm giving myself a 10-pound reward, the Thin For Life book when I get to 10 pounds. 2 down so far.

Lisa

Good morning ladies!

Kirsty ~ Glad to see you are starting to feel better, eat your veggies!!!!!

Lolly ~ You are quite the Martha Stewart!! Taking each day at a time is definitely the way to go! Keep up the great work!

Lisa ~ Yes, I did receive that last week at WI, it has some great ideas, I saw the Key Lime Pie one too, looks really good!

Well, I have been really busy at work, and haven't even had a chance to read the posts from the last couple days, but I will!! I haven't been that great at staying OP this week, but I haven't been that bad either, but with tons of appt's for my family, our new member of our family (Zeus, I will explain more), and swamped at work, my eating has taken a back seat. But, I will get motivated really soon!!!

Yes, we (DH and I) bit the bullet and bought a puppy. My DH is a big hunter and wanted a companion but mainly we wanted a great pet for our small children. So, we bought a champion-bloodline Laborador Retriever. He is all black and 6 weeks old. Oh man, is he ever sweet!!! We are working on the potty training (which I could use lots of advice) and it is going pretty well. I just took him to the vet on Monday, and he weighs 13 pounds. Going to be a big dog!! (His father weighs 110). Anyway, having a puppy in the house is just like having a newborn again, lots of work, but I am sure we will get back into our schedule again soon.

Oh, Lisa I think you mentioned the Thin for Life book. I tried to order that book a week ago thru Amazon.com and they said they can no longer get it. Do you or anyone else know where I can buy it? Preferable online? (I don't live around a Barnes and Noble or anything).

Well, better get back to my stacks of paperwork, I will check in later! A big "Hello" to everyone!!!

Tonya, I just looked on abebooks.com (a 2nd-hand book site) and they have loads of copies of Thin for Life, for all different prices. I love that site - you can find the most obscure books on there! And your puppy sounds sooooooooooooo cute. Post a picture, post a picture! (I put a picture of my hamster-baby on yesterday's thread...)

Kirsty! Glad you're feeling better! Nuclear fusion, WOO HOO (is it any better than 'the figure of the blind girl in 19th-century romantic fiction' )

Lisa - beetroot soup is FAB. REally, I recommend it, very light, kind of sweet, though the mustard really gives it a kick. And of course it's a FABBY colour

Lxxx

Good morning, ladies!!

I'm in a pretty darn good mood this morning. After going over my points on Friday (and again on Monday, by accident), I weighed in last night at 190.4, down SEVEN (can you believe it?) pounds from one week ago. I'm very happy about that.

I have a quick question for you guys--when you first started WW, did you have a constant headache? I know that when I did WW before, I had a headache pretty consistently for the first couple of weeks. And I've had a terrible one since Sunday, can anyone relate?

Kirsty--Your reading sounds absolutely fascinating, but I am not at all envious of you.

Lolly--I'm a little bit wierded out by the beetroot soup. It sounds a little strange. But if you like it, then maybe I should live on the edge and try it.

Tilley--I got the thing you're talking about last week and tried out a couple of the recipes. There's one for 5 1/2 points that has tuna and noodles and veggies and mayo that I tried and LOVED. (I added some mustard because I like mustard and it needed a little flavor). It's been a big help for me, because I always struggle to come up with fast dinner ideas.

Tonya--You got a lab puppy? Is there anything in the world cuter than a lab puppy? I personally can't think of one single thing! Labs are the greatest dog ever. (OK, maybe I'm a little bit biased). You're a very lucky lady, and I am very envious!

Quick question for you guys--what is a "skinny cow" that people speak of? I'm most curious...

OK, back to making nuclear power... Have an awesome day!

Hi all! Sorry I haven't been around. I have been a lurker a few times but haven't had any time to post. Life is busy! That's so great b/c everyone kept saying that work would slow down so much in January that if we wanted to take vacation now would be the time! How wrong they were! Yay! I have to work later today and will be busy my whole time. I think people are really stressed from the holidays or they injured themselves on the holidays and need treatments.
Guess what! Its been snowing for 3 days already! And its the best kind of snow-all fluffy and light! I'm really excited b/c this weekend we were hoping to have a sledding party to celebrate my birthday and then we had two weeks of temperatures above 0 C and most of our snow melted! I was worried-scrambling to figure out what we were going to do instead. This is like a gift just for me! Yay! I hope it snows all week!
So I have really been off the wagon since Friday! I have been dealing with my stress with my old friend food! Not overly huge amounts of it but enough to put me over my limit pointswise! I really want to get back at it. Althought I'm not going to this week b/c its my b-day and it will be so hard to start again right now. I also need to learn to deal with my stress. I tried to get in to see my dr. this week and I can't get into see her until Jan. 31st! Argh! I know I need help and that I can't handle my brother and his crisis' much longer without going insane myself! And yet when I try to see her and tell them its very important as soon as they here stress all of a sudden I'm not such a priority to get in. Argh! Sorry just had to rant here!
Last night I went out for supper for my b-day with DF and had a fabulous time! We went overboard though and had an appetizer and dessert and several very tasty drinks plus our entree! We usually only get an entree!! It was so delightful at the time but I was soooooo full after and even today 14 hours later I still feel full!!

Belle, how was Dog Park? I love KITH but usually any of their movies aren't very good at all. Let me know what you thought.

Lolly, thanks for sharing a picture of your baby-she's adorable! Great to hear you're back at it! Good for you! Hey do yo have a recipe for your soda bread?? I love soda bread but don't have a recipe to make it.

Kirsty, sorry to hear you're sick! Make sure you drink your water so you can flush out the nasty germs!

Tonya, congrats on your new family member! He sounds so sweet! I love big dogs! I don't envy the potty training though! FuN!

Lisa, here in Canada they are advertising that you get that book when you join the program right now. Is it any good? Good for you to be down 2lbs towards your goal!

Hi to everyone else! Hope you all have a great day today! Take care!

-Rina

Hi Jess! We must have been posting near the same time! Congrats on your loss! That's HUGE!! Way to go! I don't know about the headache thing. Maybe your body is just adjusting. Are you making sure you're drinking enough water? Sometimes lack of H2O will give you a h.a. Of course being an RMT I reccomend going to get a massage to get rid of it ! Hope you feel better!

Tonya: Crate training. I know, I used to think it was cruel to keep a dog in a crate, but I did it finally with my second dog and it worked. She was about a year and a half when I did this (I adopted her from the SPCA), but I got a crate and kept her in it when I wasn't home. The dogs learn that the crate is their turf and don't pee in it. That's the idea. Stella got to the point that even when we were home, she'd sometimes crawl into her cage to chew her toys. We don't use it at all anymore. Except for the occasional accident when I've been at work too long, she's fine. But with a little puppy, paper everywhere! If she even looks like she's going to do something, take her out. Try and get her on a schedule and take her out as much as possible. Give her lots of praise when she goes outside.

Lolly: What news were you watching? I'm really curious. I'll look up their website. I haven't heard anything like that, and I work for a newspaper and read the wires! I'm going to have to look again today to be sure.

Hi to everyone! Gotta run, but I'll be back later!

Jess: Drink a lot of water. That should help your headaches. As for the "skinny cow," in what context have you heard it? I'm not sure what you mean.

Jess: They are ice cream sandwiches that are really good, for just 2 points. WW has put out a similar product now, they are in a long box but the sandwiches are round. The brand name is Silhouette. The ice cream is called Skinny Cow. I found mine at Albertsons, but I can now get them at WalMart supercenters.
Good luck, they're great!!!!!
Really busy at work, we got the "big talk" about socializing way less and working way more. Whatever!! That really yanks my chain when other people gab way more than me and when I decide to chime in, then I'm nabbed! Grrrrrrr
Well, I'll get to work now.
ps...I skipped out on WW. DH and I had to watch a movie for sunday school and last night was the only night free. Yeah, good excuse, huh? We watched Proof of Life. Excellent, I must say.
Oh yeah, Lolly: I didn't make any sort of vow to lose weight, but if I did, it wouldn't be for my country, that's for damn sure.

Hi girls!! Iam at work, coughing bad but I am here nonetheless…..

Lolly - I am proud of you turning down the wine! BTW your hamster is v. cute!!

Kirsty - I have sympathy pains! Having this respiratory infection has made me lose my appetite, but I drank about 30 points in OJ yesterday….oh well, when you are sick you are sick…? Iam tracking again today, so far so good. I am glad you are feeling better!!

Lisa - have not heard of that…must be american? Sounds cool…!

Tonya - welcome to Zeus!! Very cool! Congratulations. You'll have to post a pic.

Jess - whatever you are doing, pass it along! Congrats on your loss, that's awesome.

Rina - when is your b-day? Happy bday in case I miss it due to work/sick….!! Dog Park wasn't bad - it was a romance essentially, and there were really good parts in it. Bruce and Mark from KITH are both in it. And Jennine garafolow - I liked it, you should rent it!

Kim - hey, what's new? I kept my dogs in "kennels" too and it worked as well…ah, puppies, I love them!! I miss my dogs!! How is b/f and work situation?

WELL back to work. Some dork's cell phone is going off in a most annoying way - some stupid song for a ring…AHHHH….

(cough, cough) talk to you later!!

Belle

Lolly: OK, I talked to my BF about this country weight-loss thing (he's an editor and reads more wires than I). His immediate response: "What chain email did you read that in?" The only thing we can think of is came out of Houston, Texas, a while ago. The mayor there challenged residents to lose weight, similar to what the city of Philadelphia did a few years ago. It was billed as a health thing because the cities were rumored to be among the "fattest in the U.S." Had nothing to do with patriotism, though.

Belle; BF and work are good. I'm still in a bit of slump at work, but I'm trying to get through it. I had a fun story yesterday about a cat getting stuck in a tree. What made it funny is that the fire dept. actually sent its huge ladder truck out there, which usually isn't the done. Apparently, the mayor might have had something to do with it! Still no ring ... still waiting. How are you? How's the living together?

Hi Stacey! Now I know what Skinny Cows are. I'll have to go see if the Super Wal-Mart here carries them.

Anybody try the new WW pizzas? I tried one last night. It was OK, but it was nowhere near as gooey as they showed in the TV commercial. I don't think that was the same pizza. It tastes very similar to the Healthy Choice pizza. A little bland, but not bad.

Advice, anyway? I'm probably going to be buying a new car in the next few months, and I'd like to get an SUV. Anyone have one that they love? Any suggestions? The Kia Sportage looks pretty nice. I'm planning to go test drive one.

Damn! I was supposed to have lunch with BF and he just called and cancelled. He got called in early to work. How much of his life can they possibly take? He'll be working 12 hours now, and that's not counting the hour drive each way.

hey girls just a quickie b/c I have been up for 2 days
I'm back in Ireland thank god and deestressing as we speak
As for the buffy episode If a half naked and in a sheet spike on top of an invisible yes i said invisible buffy is dating they yes they are Back to the saltmines

Hi everyone - I will be MIA after today for a bit - hopefully I can get on and lurk from the library every now and then. I can't wait to sleep in and watch daytime TV - sometimes, it's the little things. I'll spend a couple of hours at the barn tomorrow cleaning stalls - yay exercise but today it snowed! very pretty but not very good footing for riding a 1500 pound animal. They say it might be nice tomorrow but of course they didn't say it would snow today.
Tonya - welcome Zeus - and I agree - crate training. It gives the dog their own space where they know they're safe while helping lots with potty training. Grate suggestion Kim (the Grate was a pun on crate, I'm a little giddy today)
Belle - hope you feel lots better soon.
Stacey - Proof of Life was good? Russel Crowe acts like such a jerk in all his interviews that I've been really turned off of him (although I'm dying to see a beautiful mind)
Rina - your birthday will be awesome - enjoy it!!
Jess - I'd worry about constant headaches - getting enough water? taking your multi-vitamin? Hopefully it will go away soon.
Lolly - you make the wildest things - where on earth do you get your recipies?
Lisa - I think I got the Today's special at my WW meeting - the recipie ideas and snack ideas are on the top of my shopping list for tonight.
Kirsty - glad you're feeling better.

Well I'll be back to lurk a little later, I should get some work done.
KT